Estimation of Sediment Yield and Areas of Soil Erosion and Deposition for Watershed Prioritization using GIS and Remote Sensing

A Geographical Information System (GIS) based method is proposed and demonstrated for the identification of sediment source and sink areas and the prediction of sediment yield from watersheds. Data from the Haharo sub-catchment having an area of 565 km² in the Upper Damodar Valley in Jharkhand State in India was taken up for the present study due to availability of gauged data at multiple locations within watershed area. The watershed was discretized into hydrologically homogeneous grid cells to capture the watershed heterogeneity. The cells thus formed were then differentiated into cells of overland flow regions and cells of channel flow regions based on the magnitude of their flow accumulation areas. The gross soil erosion in each cell was calculated using the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE). The parameters of the USLE were evaluated using digital elevation model, soil and landuse information on cell basis. The concept of transport limited sediment delivery (TLSD) was formulated and used in ArcGIS for generating the transport capacity maps. An empirical relation is proposed and demonstrated for its usefulness for computation of land vegetation dependent transport capacity factor used in TLSD approach by linking it with normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) derived from satellite data. Using these maps, the gross soil erosion was routed to the watershed outlet using hydrological drainage paths, for derivation of transport capacity limited sediment outflow maps. These maps depict the amount of sediment rate from a particular grid in spatial domain and the pixel value of the outlet grid indicates the sediment yield at the outlet of the watershed. Up on testing, the proposed method simulated the annual sediment yield with less than ±40% error.     

Estimation of Soil Erosion and Sediment Yield Using GIS at Catchment Scale

A GIS-based method has been applied for the determination of soil erosion and sediment yield in a small watershed in Mun River basin, Thailand. The method involves spatial disintegration of the catchment into homogenous grid cells to capture the catchment heterogeneity. The gross soil erosion in each cell was calculated using Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) by carefully determining its various parameters. The concept of sediment delivery ratio is used to route surface erosion from each of the discritized cells to the catchment outlet. The process of sediment delivery from grid cells to the catchment outlet is represented by the topographical characteristics of the cells. The effect of DEM resolution on sediment yield is analyzed using two different resolutions of DEM. The spatial discretization of the catchment and derivation of the physical parameters related to erosion in the cell are performed through GIS techniques.     

Soil Erosion Assessment in a Hilly Catchment of North Eastern India Using USLE, GIS and Remote Sensing

In the present study, soil erosion assessment of Dikrong river basin of Arunachal Pradesh (India) was carried out. The river basin was divided into 200 × 200 m grid cells. The Arc Info 7.2 GIS software and RS (ERDAS IMAGINE 8.4 image processing software) provided spatial input data and the USLE was used to predict the spatial distribution of the average annual soil loss on grid basis. The average rainfall erositivity factor (R) for Dikrong river basin was found to be 1,894.6 MJ mm ha⁻¹ h⁻¹ year⁻¹. The soil erodibility factor (K) with a magnitude of 0.055 t ha h ha⁻¹ MJ⁻¹ mm⁻¹ is the highest, with 0.039 t ha h ha⁻¹ MJ⁻¹ mm⁻¹ is the least for the watershed. The highest and lowest value of slope length factor (LS) is 53.5 and 5.39 respectively for the watershed. The highest and lowest values of crop management factor (C) were found out to be 0.004 and 1.0 respectively for the watershed. The highest and lowest value of conservation factor (P) were found to be 1 and 0.28 respectively for the watershed. The average annual soil loss of the Dikrong river basin is 51 t ha⁻¹ year⁻¹. About 25.61% of the watershed area is found out to be under slight erosion class. Areas covered by moderate, high, very high, severe and very severe erosion potential zones are 26.51%, 17.87%, 13.74%, 2.39% and 13.88% respectively. Therefore, these areas need immediate attention from soil conservation point of view.     

Modelling Watershed Scale Soil Loss Prediction and Sediment Yield Estimation

Computer simulation models are becoming increasingly popular in predicting soil loss for various land use and management practices. A GIS-based system, GeoUSLE, was developed in this study for soil loss prediction and sediment yield estimation in the watershed scale. The Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) and watershed analysis models are incorporated in the system. The required watershed information and USLE factors are derived from digital elevation models (DEMs) and remote sensing data. The GIS-based system can flexibly delineate drainage networks and watersheds and rapidly query the sediment yield at any point or watershed outlet via the point-and-click interface. The study presents an example application of the system to an agricultural reservoir watershed in central Taiwan. The estimated result shows that the developed system scales up USLE applications from the slope to the watershed, which can be used to assess the erosion hot spots in a watershed for the management decision making.     

Sediment TMDL Development for the Amite River

The Amite River is recognized as one of the 15 water bodies impaired by sediments in Louisiana, USA. Based on US EPA’s Protocol sediment TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load) development is conducted for the Amite River and described in this paper. The TMDL development consists of four components: (1) development of a new model for cohesive sediment transport, (2) estimation of sediment loads (sources) due to watershed erosion, (3) river flow computation, and (4) determination of sediment TMDL for the Amite River. Using the mass conservation principle and Reynolds transport theorem a new 1-D model has been developed for computation of suspended cohesive sediment transport. Sediment erosion in the Amite River Basin is calculated by combining the USLE (Universal Soil Loss Equation) model with GIS and the digital elevation model of the Amite River Basin. Digital elevation data was imported into the GIS which generated inputs for USLE. The calculated average annual rate of soil erosion in the Amite River Basin is 13.368 tons per ha, producing a nonpoint sediment load of 103 mg/L to the Amite River. The flow computation is performed using the HEC-RAS software. The computed sediment concentration in the Amite River varies in the range of 3–114 mg/L and sediment TMDL is 281.219 tons/day. The reduction necessary to support beneficial uses of the river is 55% or 275.946 tons/day. Results indicate that the combined application of the new 1-D sediment transport model, GIS, USLE model, and HEC-RAS is an efficient and effective approach to sediment TMDL development.     

基于RS和GIS的乌东德水电站坝址区土壤侵蚀预测研究

 选取乌东德水电站坝区一典型区为试验示范区,以通用土壤流失方程（USLE）为评价模型,运用GIS和RS对各指标因子赋值,对试验区的土壤侵蚀量进行估算与分析。结果表明,试验区平均土壤侵蚀模数为6 088.58t/(km2·a),属于强度侵蚀。试验区中度以下的侵蚀面积占总面积的57.91%,土壤侵蚀量的贡献率仅为8.85%;而91.15%的侵蚀泥沙来自于面积42.09%的强度侵蚀以上的区域,其中,占11.53%的剧烈侵蚀区域贡献了43.83%的侵蚀泥沙。     

Estimation of Potential Soil Erosion for River Perkerra Catchment in Kenya

River Perkerra catchment with an area of 1207 km² is drained by River Perkerra, which is one of the rivers flowing into Lake Baringo whose drainage area is 6820 km². The lake is in a semi-arid area of Kenya. Its depth has reduced from 8 m in 1972 to 2.5 m in 2003 due to siltation resulting from high erosion rates in the catchment. The entire catchment is characterised by very steep slopes on the hillsides and gentle slopes in the middle and lower reaches where the surface is bare with very little undergrowth. Interventions to control soil erosion in this fragile ecosystem have been limited partly because of lack of data on erosion and its spatial distribution. In the present study, Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) was used in conjunction with GIS Arc/Info and Integrated Land and Water Information Systems (ILWIS) to estimate potential soil loss from River Perkerra catchment. Various physical parameters of the equation were derived by analysing spatial data and processing Landsat TM satellite imagery of the catchment. The estimated potential soil erosion from the catchment was 1.73 million tonnes/year while the sediment yield at the catchment outlet was found to be 1.47 million tonnes/year. The sediment delivery ratio derived using an empirical equation was 0.83. This figure indicates that a higher proportion of sediments generated in the catchment is delivered at the outlet. The use of GIS enabled the results of erosion potential to be mapped back onto the catchment. This is useful in identifying priority areas that require urgent management interventions in controlling soil erosion.     

黄河多沙粗沙区分布式土壤流失模型支持系统

利用3S技术,以黄河多沙粗沙区小流域分布式土壤流失数学模型为服务对象,建立模型支持系统。所建支持系统具有数据管理灵活高效、系统适用面广、易于扩充,以及可以实现各类数据实时生成的优点;达到了流域地形和水沙演进数据的自动提取;提出了虚拟现实环境参照下分类模板定义的方法,提高了遥感影像的分类精度,有效地解决了辨别"同物异谱、异物同谱"现象的问题;实现了GIS功能与专业模型的紧密耦合,两者之间的信息可以进行双向交换和修改。     

Finite Element Method and GIS Based Distributed Model for Soil Erosion and Sediment Yield in a Watershed

The objective of this study is to develop a soil erosion and sediment yield model based on the kinematic wave approximation using the finite element method, remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) for calculating the soil erosion and sediment yield in a watershed. Detachment of soil particles by overland flow occurs when the shear stress at the surface overcomes the gravitational forces and cohesive forces on the particles. Deposition occurs when the sediment load is greater than the transport capacity. Beasley et al.’s (Trans ASAE 23:938–944, 1980) transport equations for laminar and turbulent flow conditions are used to calculate the transport capacity. The model is capable of handling distributed information about land use, slope, soil and Manning’s roughness. The model is applied to the Catsop watershed in the Netherlands and the Harsul watershed in India. Remotely sensed data has been used to extract land use/land cover map of the Harsul watershed, and other thematic maps are generated using the GIS. The simulated results for both calibration and validation events are compared with the observed data for the watersheds and found to be reasonable. Statistical evaluation of model performance has been carried out. Further, a sensitivity analysis has also been carried out to study the effect of variation in model parameter values on computed volume of sediment, peak sediment and the time to peak sediment. Sensitivity analysis has also been carried out for grid size variation and time step variation of the Catsop watershed. The proposed model is useful in predicting the hydrographs and sedigraphs in the agricultural watersheds.     

基于GIS的粤北青莲水流域水土流失成因分析

随着人类社会经济活动的加强,水土流失有持续恶化趋势,青莲水流域内土壤肥力下降,河道泥沙淤积,影响河流行洪安全。本文选用通用土壤流失方程,利用ArcGIS的空间叠加分析等功能,分别计算分析研究区内与土壤侵蚀相关的降雨、土壤、植被、地形、土地利用等因子,经叠加分析后生成流域水土流失现状图。结果表明,地形地貌因子和土地利用因子是影响流域水土流失的关键因子,研究结果可为广东省中小流域治理提供水土保持方面的理论支撑。     

Hypsometric Integral Estimation Methods and its Relevance on Erosion Status of North-Western Lesser Himalayan Watersheds

Assessment of erosion status of a watershed is an essential prerequisite of integrated watershed management. This not only assists in chalking out suitable soil and water conservation measures to arrest erosion and conserve water but also helps in devising best management practices to enhance biomass production in watersheds. The geologic stages of development and erosion proneness of the watersheds are quantified by hypsometric integral. The estimation of hypsometric integral is carried out from the graphical plot of the measured contour elevation and encompassed area and by using empirical formulae. In this study, efforts were made to estimate the hypsometric integral values of the Sainj and Tirthan watersheds and their sub watersheds in the Lesser Himalayas using four different techniques, and to compare the procedural techniques of its estimation and relevance on erosion status. It was revealed that the hypsometric integral calculated by elevation–relief ratio method was accurate, less cumbersome and easy to calculate within GIS environment. Also comparison of these hypsometric integral values revealed that the Sainj watershed (0.51) was more prone to erosion than the Tirthan watershed (0.41). Further, the validation of these results with the recorded sediment yield data of 24 years (1981–2004) corroborated that the average annual sediment yield during this period for Sainj watershed (0.53 Mt) was more than that of the Tirthan watershed (0.3 Mt). Thus, the hypsometric integral value can be used as an estimator of erosion status of watersheds leading to watershed prioritization for taking up soil and water conservation measures in watershed systems.     

三峡库区下岸溪小流域水土流失现状评估

 以三峡库区下岸溪小流域为研究区,在GIS软件的支持下,利用2008年SPOT5遥感影像和1∶5万DEM数据,提取坡度因子、植被覆盖度因子和土地利用类型因子作为水土流失风险评估指标因子,结合土壤侵蚀分级标准,生成研究区水土流失风险分级图,利用改进的工程侵蚀模数计算模型,对小流域土壤侵蚀量进行了估算。结果表明：①本流域以水力侵蚀为主,占研究区总面积的88.81%,其中中度侵蚀面积占该流域总面积的38.49%;②开矿等引起的工程侵蚀对该小流域土壤侵蚀量贡献率很大,占该流域水土流失量的41.43%。因此,在开矿和矿区基础设施建设等工程施工时,应采取有效的水土保持措施。     

吕二沟小流域水土保持措施对径流和侵蚀产沙的影响

以甘肃天水吕二沟流域22年实测水文泥沙数据为基础，从降水～侵蚀产沙、径流～产沙关系入手，统计分析了小流域水土保持措施对径流和侵蚀产沙的影响。结果表明：小流域径流和侵蚀产沙在年内的分布与降水的季节分配和植被生长发育期有关；径流和侵蚀产沙的年际变化是随流域水土保持措施全面实施和小流域林草植被面积的增加，流域径流量和侵蚀产沙量逐渐减少。从单次降水～径流、降水～侵蚀产沙关系曲线来看，小流域水土保持措施发挥着明显的减水、减沙效益，为流域的综合治理、水土资源的合理开发利用提供科学依据。     

基于GIS黄土丘陵沟壑区分布式侵蚀产沙模型的构建——以蛇家沟小流域为例

分布式侵蚀产沙模型是土壤侵蚀模型的重要发展方向,本研究将蛇家沟流域下垫面划分为5 ×5m的栅格,每个栅格内赋予相应的高程、坡度、地貌、土地利用等属性信息.根据流域DEM,确定流域的汇流方向、流路与汇流累积面积.在蛇家沟流域内采用“穷举算法”对SCS-CN模型的参数值进行校正.基于DEM、地貌、土地利用以及降雨等资料,利用黄土丘陵沟壑区良好的水沙关系,运用VB.NET+ARC ENGINE9.2+ SQLSERVER2000构建分布式侵蚀产沙模型.模型结构简单,输入参数比较少,利用求产流来求产沙,考虑了土地利用、汇流等因素具有一定的物理意义,并能达到一定的预报精度.其中产沙模型是建立在黄土丘陵沟壑区普遍的水沙关系基础上,通过校正水沙关系式系数及产流模型中的CN、λ值可在其它相似的小流域内使用.该研究可为黄土丘陵沟壑区水土保持治理效果评价提供依据.     

Estimation of Soil Erosion for a Himalayan Watershed Using GIS Technique

The fragile ecosystem of the Himalayas has been an increasing cause of concern to environmentalists and water resources planners. The steep slopes in the Himalayas along with depletedforest cover, as well as high seismicity have been major factors in soil erosion and sedimentation in river reaches. Prediction ofsoil erosion is a necessity if adequate provision is to be madein the design of conservation structures to offset the ill effects of sedimentation during their lifetime.In the present study, two different soil erosion models, i.e. theMorgan model and Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) model, have been used to estimate soil erosion from a Himalayan watershed.Parameters required for both models were generated using remotesensing and ancillary data in GIS mode. The soil erosion estimated by Morgan model is in the order of 2200 t km^-2 yr^-1 and is within the limits reported for this region.The soil erosion estimated by USLE gives a higher rate. Therefore, for the present study the Morgan model gives, for area located in hilly terrain, fairly good results.     

基于地块间水沙运移的黄土丘陵沟壑区小流域侵蚀产沙模型

根据黄土丘陵沟壑区的侵蚀产沙规律，在晋西羊道沟小流域建立了坡面、沟坡和沟道侵蚀产沙子模型；在GIS的支持下计算出小流域地块间水沙汇流网络，并引入到小流域侵蚀产沙模型中，使小流域侵蚀产沙成为有机结合；模型对羊道沟22次侵蚀性降雨的侵蚀模数具有78．4％的预报精度，对羊道沟1956－1970的年侵蚀模数具有76．1％的预报精度；模型并通过了晋西汾河上游两个小流域的可移植性检验。     

Estimation of Sediment Yield for a Rain,Snow and Glacier Fed River in the Western Himalayan Region

Assessment of soil erosion, sediment transport and deposition of sediment in the reservoirs, irrigation and hydropower systems are considered essential for the land and water management. The magnitude of sediment transported by rivers has become a serious concern for the water resources planning. In the present study, an assessment of sediment yield has been made for the Satluj River, which flows through the western Himalayan region. Two approaches have been used for the assessment of sediment yield (i) relationship between suspended sediment load and discharge and (ii) empirical relationship. The first approach was used for Satluj Basin up to Suni (52 983 km²), Kasol (53 768 km²) and also for the intermediate basin between Kasol and Suni (785 km²). The sediment-discharge relationship was developed using daily data for a period of three years (1991–1993) for different basins and was applied for each basin for the years 1994 and 1996 for estimation of sediment yield. The second approach, which gives annual sediment yield, has been used for a small intermediate basin only because of data availability constraints. For estimation of the sediment yield using the empirical relationship, various geographical parameters such as land use, topographical etc. were generated using Geographic Information System (GIS) technique. The annual sediment yield for the intermediate basin was estimated for three years and compared with observed values. The trend of difference between computed and observed sediment yield suggested an effect of physical features of mountainous basins. The available empirical relationship was, therefore, revised by incorporating a basin parameter in the equation. This basin parameter represented an integrated effect of slope and spatial distribution of rainfall in the mountainous basin. Using the revised empirical relationship, the sediment yield was estimated for two independent years and a good correlation was found between computed and observed sediment yield.     

Multi-Criteria Decision Making Approach for Watershed Prioritization Using Analytic Hierarchy Process Technique and GIS

Watershed prioritization based on the natural resources and physical processes involves locating critical areas of erosion, which produce maximum sediment yield to take up conservation activities on priority basis. The present study was taken up with a specific objective of prioritization of micro-watersheds using Multi-Criteria Decision Approach – Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) based SYI model (AHPSYI) under GIS environment for a case study area of Mayurakshi watershed in India. This method basically uses information of Potential Erosion Index (PEI) and Sediment Delivery Ratio (SDR), indicative of transport capacity. In the present study, sediment delivery factors viz., topography, vegetation cover, proximity to water courses and soil were translated into GIS layers and integrated using Boolean conditions to create a data layer of spatially distributed SDIs’ across the watershed. For assessment of PEI, important watershed parameters viz., land use/land cover, soil, slope, and drainage density maps were integrated in the GIS environment using Weighted Linear Combination method (WLC) by assigning weights to themes and ranks to features of individual theme using AHP technique. A comparison between AHPSYI based sub watershed prioritization map with that of prioritization map based on the observed sediment yield data revealed that about 78 % of the area showed concurrence. Thus, it can be inferred that the watershed prioritization based on only thematic layers can be dependable to maximum extent. Subsequently, proposed approach was adopted for prioritization of the study area at micro watershed scale, where area under high and very high categories together constitutes around 33 % of the study area. Around 100 micro-watersheds out of 276 watersheds are under moderate to very high category respectively, signifying the need for watershed management.     

侵蚀产沙模型研究进展和GIS应用

近年来随着地理信息系统 (GIS)技术的发展 ,侵蚀产沙模型与GIS的结合成为必然 ;作者阐述了近年来国际上流行的基于GIS的侵蚀产沙模型 :RUSLE、WEPP、ANSWERS等模型的主要内容、特点及适用范围 ,并对我国以陡坡为代表基于GIS的侵蚀产沙模型进行了介绍和评述 ;提出了目前侵蚀产沙模拟研究中存在的主要问题 ,并对基于GIS的侵蚀产沙模型的研究工作进行了展望。能反映侵蚀产沙时空过程的、基于GIS的分布式侵蚀产沙模型成为研究的重点     

基于径流侵蚀功率的流域次暴雨输沙模型研究——以岔巴沟流域为例

流域次暴雨侵蚀产沙模型研究是国内外土壤侵蚀研究的重点领域之一。提出了基于径流深和洪峰流量模数两个流域次暴雨洪水特征参数的径流侵蚀功率的概念;利用岔巴沟曹坪水文站1959至1990年间历年实测的次暴雨洪水径流泥沙资料,系统研究了该流域次暴雨径流侵蚀功率与流域输沙模数之间的相关关系,建立和验证了基于径流侵蚀功率的岔巴沟流域次暴雨输沙模型。结果表明,岔巴沟流域次暴雨径流侵蚀功率与流域输沙模数之间具有极显著的幂函数相关关系;模型验证期的次暴雨输沙模数模拟值与实测值之间具有较好的一致性。